The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1887-01-05
Farmer FairWeather.
By wILK!E COLLINS.

lam the last surviving witness who ap
peared at the trial. q d unless l reduce
to writing what l happen to know, there
will be no record of the true particular!
left after my death.
the town of Bctminster, and rounc
about it for many good English mile
I am known as Dame Roundwood.
I have never been married, and, at my
present age, I never shall be. My oie
living relative. at the past time of which
/ now write. was my sister-married to
man named Morcom He was settled
in rance, as a breeder of horses. Now
and then h /. crossed over to England on
business. and went buck again.
took such dislike to Morcom that
refused to be present at the W dding.
This led, of curse, to a quarrel. Ncph-
ewS and nicces. if there had been any,
might perhaps have reconciled NE with
my sister. AS it was, we never wrote to
each other after she went to France with
her husband. And never saw her again
until S! e lay on her deathbed. So much
aboat myself, to begin with.
II.
Circumstances, which it is neither
need(ul nor pleasant to dwell on in this
place, occasioned the loss of my income,
while l was still in the prime of my life.
I had no choice but 10 make the best of
a bad bargain, and to earn my bread by
going out to service.
Having provided myself with good
recommendations, I applied for the va
cant place of housckeeper to Farmer
Fairwcathcr. I had heard of him as
well-to do old bachelor, cu!tivating his
land nigh on five miles in a northerly di-
rection beyond Betminsser. But posi-
lively declare that had never been in
his house. nor exchanged a word with
him, on the day when Iset firth for the
farm.
The door was opened to me by nice
little girl. l noticed that her manners
were pretty, and her voice was remark
ably strong one for her age. She had,
may also mention, the finest blue eyes /
ever saw in any young creatures face.
When she looked at you, there was just
a cast as they call it, in her left eye, bare
ly noticeable, and not deformity in any
sense of the word. The one drawbac
that could find in this otherwise pleas
ing young person was that she had rather
a suIlen look, and that she seemed to be
depressed in her spirits.
But, like most people, the girl was
ready enough to talk about herself. l
found that her name was Dina Coomb,
and that she had lost 9th her parents.
Farmer Fairweather was her guardian, as
we'll as her uncle. and he'd fortune of
ten thou and pounds ready and waiting
for her when she came of age.
What would become of the money if
she died in her youth, was more than
Dina could tell me- Her mothers time
piece had been already given to her, by
directions in her mothers will. 1t looked
of great value to my eyes, and it tlattered
her vanity to see how admired her grand
gold watch.
Il hope you are coming to stay here, :"
she said tC me.
This seemed, as thought, rather a
sudden fancy to take to stranger.
'Why do you want me to stay with
you2' I asked.
And she hung her head, and had moth
ing to say. The farmer came in from
his fields, and I entered on my business
with him. At the same time I noticed.
with some surprise, that Dina slipped
out of the room BY one door when her
unc,e came in by the other.
He was pleased with my recommended
tons, and he civilly offered me sufficient
wages. Moreover, he was still fair to
look upon, and not (as some farmers are)
slcvcnly in his dress. so far from being
an enemy to this miserable man, as has
been falsely asserted, I gladly engaged
to take my place at the farm on the next
day at II o'clock, noon.
A friendly neighbor at Bctminster,
one Master Couch, gave me cast in his
gig. We arrived true to the appointed
time. While Master Couch waited to
bring my box after me, I opened the
garden-gate and rang the bell at the
door. There was no answer. had just
rung once more, when heard scream
in the house. These were the words
that followed the scream, in a voice
which recognized as the voice Of Dina
Coomb:
~ u uncle, Q0nt XIII me.
was too frightened to know what to
do. Master Couch, having heard that
dreadful cry as / did, jumped out of the
gig and tried the door. 1t was not fast
ened inside. Just az he was stepping
over the threshold, the farmer bounced
out of room that opened into the pas
sage, and asked what he did there
NJ IL
sir, is Dame Roundwood, come to your
house by your own appointment"
Thercupon Farmer Fairweathcr said
he had changed his mind, and meant to
do withouta hou.ekeeper. He spoke in
an angry manner, and he took the door
in his hand, as if he meant to shut us
ont. But before he could do this, we
heard amoaning in the room that he had
just come out Of. Says my neighbor:
''Thcres somebody hurt, I'm afraid"
Says |: "Is it your niece, sir"
The farmer slammed the door in our
faces, and then locked it against US.
There was no hip for Us after this, but
to 60 back to Betminster.
Ma ter Couch, cautious man in all
things, recommended that he should
wait awhile before we spoke of what
had happened. on the chance of receiv-
ing an explanation and apology f.om the
farmer, when he recovered his tcmp:r.
Iagreed to this. But there. am wo-
man. and l did take lady "a part c!l.
lar lricn of mine into my confidence.
the next day it was all o.cr the town.
Inquiries were made; some of the labor